We all know social media manipulates us. We know they're tracking out data. We know it's designed to get us addicted. And yet no matter how many times we are warned about what social media is doing to us, we still use it. Can we really have a healthy relationship with social media, or is it inherently detrimental to our mental health? In this episode, Sophie and Raymond discuss the 2020 Netflix Documentary The Social Dilemma, iHeart's street-art piece Nobody Likes Me, the role of social media in the musical Dear Evan Hansen, and the meaning of community and companionship.

In our next episode, we will be discussing the Bridge Over Troubled Water, by Simon and Garfunkel.

Questions? Comments? E-mail us at [email protected], visit our website atunreliablenarratorspodcast.wordpress.com, or say hi on Instagram @unreliablenarratorspodcast.

Theme music is "No New Words" by Caleb Klomparens. Check out his music athttps://soundcloud.com/kappamuse

Access the 2022-2023 Stoa Mars Hill list here: https://stoausa.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Mars-Hill-Topics-2022-2023-1.pdf

In this episode, we are joined by editor-in-chief and co-founder of the Rising Tide Foundation, Cynthia Chung. Cynthia has lectured on the topics of Schiller’s aesthetics, Shakespeare’s tragedies, Roman history, and the Florentine Renaissance among other subjects. She is a writer for Strategic Culture Foundation, and is a contributing author to the book series “The Clash of the Two Americas.” In this episode, we discuss C.S. Lewis's concerns about modern education, the threat of scientific dictatorship, the essence of culture, science and magic, and much more as we explore the epic conclusion of Lewis's space trilogy, That Hideous Strength.

Time Stamps: 1:24 Cynthia discusses the Rising Tide Foundation 5:47 Cynthia’s background in molecular biology 7:31 The historical backdrop if That Hideous Strength, C.S. Lewis’s contemporaries 12:10 Discussing The Abolition of Man important to understanding That Hideous Strength 18:23 Was Lewis’s critique of H.G. Wells legitimate? 21:39 Mark Studdock and Bracton College: the progressive Element and the Traditionalist School 23:12 Mark’s obsession with the Inner Ring 27:10 How the N.I.C.E. uses “remedial treatment” on people who oppose them 29:51 The final Inner Ring: the “Head” 35:05 Turning attention to Jane, Mark’s wife, who is having prophetic dreams 37:21 Merlin represents something Britain has lost 40:55 Why did George Orwell critique Lewis for including Merlin in the story? 48:37 The epic climax: The Curse of Babel on the N.I.C.E. 1:01:48 Closing thoughts on the Inner Ring and Tolkien’s “One Ring” 1:05:43 Are the “good guys” in this story just another Inner Ring? Why are they different? 1:12:14 Lewis’s “Logres” 1:13:48 Cynthia’s upcoming projects

Rising Tide Foundation: https://risingtidefoundation.net/ Cynthia's Substack: https://cynthiachung.substack.com/ Cynthia's Lecture Series on the Space Trilogy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4W04cnITUI

Part 2 of this episode series can be found here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/perelandra/id1594769451?i=1000581106991

Stay tuned for our next episode when we discuss Marvel's 2021 film Spider-Man: No Way Home.

Questions? Comments? E-mail us at [email protected], visit our website at unreliablenarratorspodcast.wordpress.com, or say hi on Instagram @unreliablenarratorspodcast.

Our sound designer is Caleb Klomparens. Check out his music at https://soundcloud.com/kappamuse

Access the 2022-2023 Stoa Mars Hill list here: https://stoausa.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Mars-Hill-Topics-2022-2023-1.pdf

Sophie and Raymond discuss their most depressing topic since Silence by Shusaku Endo: The Seventh Seal, a film by Ingmar Bergman. What is the meaning of silence in the film? Who do the characters represent? How does medieval symbology help us understand this artistic enigma? The Seventh Seal may be nihilistic and full of dread, but your favorite hosts never are.

In our next episode, we will be discussing Makoto Fujimura's art series, the Four Gospel Frontispieces.

Questions? Comments? E-mail us at [email protected], visit our website atunreliablenarratorspodcast.wordpress.com, or say hi on Instagram @unreliablenarratorspodcast.

Theme music is "No New Words" by Caleb Klomparens. Check out his music athttps://soundcloud.com/kappamuse

Access the 2022-2023 Stoa Mars Hill list here: https://stoausa.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Mars-Hill-Topics-2022-2023-1.pdf

Episode Notes

What is grief if not love persevering?

Raymond gets excited about cinematography. Sophie pulls out her copy of C.S. Lewis's Till We Have Faces. We talk about The Truman Show, grief, Gethsemane, and...memes? Plus, we answer a listener question!

New episodes every other Friday. Stay tuned for our next episode where we discuss Shusaku Endo's 1966 novel Silence.

Questions? Comments? E-mail us at [email protected], visit our website at unreliablenarratorspodcast.wordpress.com, or check us out on Instagram @unreliablenarratorspodcast.

Theme music is "No New Words" by Caleb Klomparens. Check out his music at https://soundcloud.com/kappamuse.

Access the Stoa Mars Hill list here: https://stoausa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Mars-Hill-Topics-2021-2022-1.pdf.

In Tokyo, Japan, high schooler Shoya Ishida seeks to reconcile a broken relationship with his childhood classmate, Shoko Nishimiya, a deaf girl he used to bully. But true redemption isn't so simple. Join Sophie, Raymond, and our guest speaker John-Luke Dokupil as we dive into the 2016 Japanese animated film A Silent Voice (聲の形) based on the manga series by Yoshitoki Oima. In this episode, we'll discuss the power of animation to peer into the human soul, as well as more serious issues like bullying and suicide in Japanese culture. We come across some surprising parallels along the way, including but not limited to Fyodor Dostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov!

New episodes every other Friday. Stay tuned for our next episode where we discuss And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie.

Questions? Comments? E-mail us at [email protected]

Visit our website at unreliablenarratorspodcast.wordpress.com

Check out the artist behind our theme music at https://soundcloud.com/kappamuse

Access the Stoa Mars Hill list here: https://stoausa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Mars-Hill-Topics-2021-2022-1.pdf